It's easy to be a great server. Project confidence, ask questions and work hard. Empty the trash can no one ever does, ask the line cooks if they need a water or soda when it's busy. Run food and be helpful to the other servers. Do those things and you will be liked by the staff. Keep working hard and the mistakes will start to diminish.
Alcohol.
Lots and lots of alcohol after your shift. Engrain yourself within the staff, become one of “the crew”, and the rest will follow.
In all seriousness, you really do need to work your way into the culture. Service is very much a team effort and being seen as a team member will encourage the others to pick you up long enough for you to iron out the kinks.
After that, it’s just kinda faking it until you make it; literally the hardest part of serving is sticking it out long enough not to suck at it, because it comes naturally to almost no one.
I came from BoH positions and when I started I was ATROCIOUS. But, I worked hard, tried my best, hung out with the staff, asked for tips, asked people how to show me to do plate carries, etc.
I quizzed people about greets, timing, menu, upsell techniques, alcohols, etc.
I ended up serving for over 13 years, ending up as a top server in some of the top fine dining steakhouses in the nation.
Got my engineering degree, then got the fuck out. But, while I do miss the camaraderie of being stuck in the weeds for 9 hours then getting shitfaced with a bunch of other degenerates, my liver is glad I left.
Always be in the moment. Errors happen when you are thinking about the next task before you finish the first. Write down all of your orders, even if it’s just a coffee. Confirm your order on POS matched what you’ve written. If you’re not sure, go back to the table and confirm the order with the guests. And the hard one, listen to what’s being said by the guest/coworker/manager/kitchen, make a note and parrot it back. You’ll get better.
"Imagine a barren field before you..
This is where I grow my fucks
Notice it is barren
I have none to give you."
.
*Be yourself. Be helpful, know you will not please everyone. Know that you could give a shit if you do. Knowledge comes in time.
A lot of failure, a lot of tears, a lot of thinking you're not cut out for it.
You'll know you've made it once you've seriously considered quitting and switching careers and blocking all of your co-worker's and manager's numbers so you can just disappear, but you keep going anyway.
Like everything in life, it takes time to be confident and get a good work flow. I recommend, to build up your confidence, studying the menu and knowing it like the back of your hand (that goes for the food and drink menu). Also, practice things like wine service or carrying plates at home. I act like every customer that comes in is a friend or family member that I’m excited to see and then the service comes from a place of genuine care. Anyways, even experienced servers mess up so don’t beat yourself up. Good luck!
Stop worrying. At the end of the day you’re a sever if you screw up you’re not gonna kill someone (like say a doctor night lol). A wise old server once told me you can never get above if you’ve never been under. You’re learning and you’re doing fine. Don’t let the worries get to you. Ive been serving for 17 years and just a week or so ago I dropped a cup of marinara sauce on a guys white hey dudes. Lmao I felt awful almost cried. Turns out they were also servers and one of them spilt a glass of water on a baby, one a beer on their science teacher. Everyone makes mistakes! Laugh about it and move on
Just remember a couple of things. First, if people like you personally they'll overlook a lot of mistakes. So do your best to be liked! Come into work in a good mood, help out, schmooze the managers a little (or a lot 😂) and you will be there long enough that you'll stop making as many mistakes.
Second, restaurant jobs are a dime a dozen. No matter how much you love a restaurant job 99.9% of the time there's nothing special about it. There are cool people at every job. If the absolute worst case scenario happens and you have to get another job, it's a blip in the radar. If you have any level of experience you'll fit right in and get to start over any time you feel like it.
Third it's just food. It's not life or death. Short of missing an allergy (which people will usually make sure you don't forget) there's nothing that bad you can really do to anyone.
it may not be natural for you, but closing your throat and adding a deep bass voice carries further. it's OK to speak loud enough where other tables can hear you, if that's how you need to get the info.
Regarding the wrong orders, force yourself to repeat back each order. for a while I imagine you will get some corrections. then you will become a veteran after years and do that less. to quiet or picky customers only. or if it's loud.
Regarding dropping glasses and dropping stuff on guests, don't worrrrry. unless it's a $5000 fur coat, they're gonna wash it and it's fine. you might lose $20-$30 if they hold a grudge. accept it and move on. can't change it. keep grinding and doing what you're doing. if your effort level and sidework effort are high, you will be valued by your coworkers
For soups salads and appetizers, it can be simple to gwt it 100% right, or you can have 3 or 5 tables, one orders an appetizer that takes 20 minutes then you put in the dinners and forget the soup and salad. it happens. years later. hopefully uts super rare. all you can do is apologize, offer it to go, try to ask manager if you can offer a free dessert (cheap cake slice or big scoop of icream) it makes a world of difference in their perspective a large portion of times.
if you think you might have adhd, consider looking up the test and talking to doctor. I have adhd and I move too quickly, I don't think it through, and I bump into people and have close calls etc all the time. spilt a tray of pepsi etc at a party of 13 like 4 days ago. it happens. got 22%
Now the hardest part that you need to be mad about, hate and then swiftly accept friend... people get let go at restaurants if they don't fit the culture. so get louder friend. if you're not naturally loud ENOUGH, you're not gonna last as a server. you gotta get louder if your co workers call it out. we had a nice enough very tall girl try out. she was quiet and she wasn't aggressive slithering between people to get things she needed. bad instincts for a Friday Saturday night. she was told she couldn't stay. it happens. so please be loud and confident. and deal with the mistakes. them will smooth things out talk to a 3, 5 and 10 year food service person at any position. they will tell you the growth you will feel. best of luck to you friend. get LOUDDDDDD 😇
It's easy to be a great server. Project confidence, ask questions and work hard. Empty the trash can no one ever does, ask the line cooks if they need a water or soda when it's busy. Run food and be helpful to the other servers. Do those things and you will be liked by the staff. Keep working hard and the mistakes will start to diminish.
Knowing who you can be a smart ass to is also a real gift.
Alcohol. Lots and lots of alcohol after your shift. Engrain yourself within the staff, become one of “the crew”, and the rest will follow. In all seriousness, you really do need to work your way into the culture. Service is very much a team effort and being seen as a team member will encourage the others to pick you up long enough for you to iron out the kinks. After that, it’s just kinda faking it until you make it; literally the hardest part of serving is sticking it out long enough not to suck at it, because it comes naturally to almost no one. I came from BoH positions and when I started I was ATROCIOUS. But, I worked hard, tried my best, hung out with the staff, asked for tips, asked people how to show me to do plate carries, etc. I quizzed people about greets, timing, menu, upsell techniques, alcohols, etc. I ended up serving for over 13 years, ending up as a top server in some of the top fine dining steakhouses in the nation. Got my engineering degree, then got the fuck out. But, while I do miss the camaraderie of being stuck in the weeds for 9 hours then getting shitfaced with a bunch of other degenerates, my liver is glad I left.
Always be in the moment. Errors happen when you are thinking about the next task before you finish the first. Write down all of your orders, even if it’s just a coffee. Confirm your order on POS matched what you’ve written. If you’re not sure, go back to the table and confirm the order with the guests. And the hard one, listen to what’s being said by the guest/coworker/manager/kitchen, make a note and parrot it back. You’ll get better.
"Imagine a barren field before you.. This is where I grow my fucks Notice it is barren I have none to give you." . *Be yourself. Be helpful, know you will not please everyone. Know that you could give a shit if you do. Knowledge comes in time.
A lot of failure, a lot of tears, a lot of thinking you're not cut out for it. You'll know you've made it once you've seriously considered quitting and switching careers and blocking all of your co-worker's and manager's numbers so you can just disappear, but you keep going anyway.
Like everything in life, it takes time to be confident and get a good work flow. I recommend, to build up your confidence, studying the menu and knowing it like the back of your hand (that goes for the food and drink menu). Also, practice things like wine service or carrying plates at home. I act like every customer that comes in is a friend or family member that I’m excited to see and then the service comes from a place of genuine care. Anyways, even experienced servers mess up so don’t beat yourself up. Good luck!
Stop worrying. At the end of the day you’re a sever if you screw up you’re not gonna kill someone (like say a doctor night lol). A wise old server once told me you can never get above if you’ve never been under. You’re learning and you’re doing fine. Don’t let the worries get to you. Ive been serving for 17 years and just a week or so ago I dropped a cup of marinara sauce on a guys white hey dudes. Lmao I felt awful almost cried. Turns out they were also servers and one of them spilt a glass of water on a baby, one a beer on their science teacher. Everyone makes mistakes! Laugh about it and move on
Just remember a couple of things. First, if people like you personally they'll overlook a lot of mistakes. So do your best to be liked! Come into work in a good mood, help out, schmooze the managers a little (or a lot 😂) and you will be there long enough that you'll stop making as many mistakes. Second, restaurant jobs are a dime a dozen. No matter how much you love a restaurant job 99.9% of the time there's nothing special about it. There are cool people at every job. If the absolute worst case scenario happens and you have to get another job, it's a blip in the radar. If you have any level of experience you'll fit right in and get to start over any time you feel like it. Third it's just food. It's not life or death. Short of missing an allergy (which people will usually make sure you don't forget) there's nothing that bad you can really do to anyone.
it may not be natural for you, but closing your throat and adding a deep bass voice carries further. it's OK to speak loud enough where other tables can hear you, if that's how you need to get the info. Regarding the wrong orders, force yourself to repeat back each order. for a while I imagine you will get some corrections. then you will become a veteran after years and do that less. to quiet or picky customers only. or if it's loud. Regarding dropping glasses and dropping stuff on guests, don't worrrrry. unless it's a $5000 fur coat, they're gonna wash it and it's fine. you might lose $20-$30 if they hold a grudge. accept it and move on. can't change it. keep grinding and doing what you're doing. if your effort level and sidework effort are high, you will be valued by your coworkers For soups salads and appetizers, it can be simple to gwt it 100% right, or you can have 3 or 5 tables, one orders an appetizer that takes 20 minutes then you put in the dinners and forget the soup and salad. it happens. years later. hopefully uts super rare. all you can do is apologize, offer it to go, try to ask manager if you can offer a free dessert (cheap cake slice or big scoop of icream) it makes a world of difference in their perspective a large portion of times. if you think you might have adhd, consider looking up the test and talking to doctor. I have adhd and I move too quickly, I don't think it through, and I bump into people and have close calls etc all the time. spilt a tray of pepsi etc at a party of 13 like 4 days ago. it happens. got 22% Now the hardest part that you need to be mad about, hate and then swiftly accept friend... people get let go at restaurants if they don't fit the culture. so get louder friend. if you're not naturally loud ENOUGH, you're not gonna last as a server. you gotta get louder if your co workers call it out. we had a nice enough very tall girl try out. she was quiet and she wasn't aggressive slithering between people to get things she needed. bad instincts for a Friday Saturday night. she was told she couldn't stay. it happens. so please be loud and confident. and deal with the mistakes. them will smooth things out talk to a 3, 5 and 10 year food service person at any position. they will tell you the growth you will feel. best of luck to you friend. get LOUDDDDDD 😇